Simplicity 2176: Summer Sewing Camp

 Sorry for the long absence folks...this summer has been super busy. If you follow me on Instagram (erikamadeit) you have seen my new puppy, Rockford. He is an adorable time suck that keeps me from blogging. I've also been teaching everyday at Fabricland's Summer Sewing Camp. 

Last week we made Simplicity 2176. Its one of those Project Runway sewing patterns which are frustrating to use. They separate each of the styling designs on the back of the envelope so you never know how much fabric you really need. I made the version with the band, wide straps, and the border on the skirt. I used a contrasting floral and stripe to make a fun, summery frock. Both fabrics are a quilt weight cotton, which works fine for this dress.

The dresses in the class came out beautifully, we had four afternoons to make them.I had to do some alterations to make them fit such a wide range of girls, one was way smaller than the smallest size, but they look great. The most challenging part was folding over and sewing the band on the bottom. We had to hem the skirt a lot for the girls, and then shorten the band to match. The bias started the stretch and we had to try a couple times to get it right.  But they did really well and we had a lot of fun.